THE  GOSPEL  ADAPTED  TO  THE  WANTS  OF  THE  WOULD. 


A 

SERMON, 

PREACHED  IN  PROVIDENCE,  R.  I.,  SEPT.  9,  1840, 

BEFORE  THE 

AMERICAN  BOARD  OF  COMMISSIONERS 


FOR 

FOREIGN  MISSIONS, 

AT  THEIR 

THIRTY-FIRST  ANNUAL  MEETING. 


BY  NATHAN  S.  S.  BEMAN,  D.  D. 

Troy,  N.  Y. 


BOSTON: 

PRINTED  BY  CROCKER  AND  BREWSTER, 
47  Washington  Street. 


1840. 


SERMON. 


Psalm  72:  17. 


“ His  name  shall  endure  forever : his  name  shall  he  con- 
tinued as  long  as  the  sun  : and  men  shall  be  blessed  in 
him  : all  nations  shall  call  him  blessed." 


This  divine  song  has  a primary  reference  to  the 
kingdom  of  Solomon,  the  son  of  David ; but  was 
intended,  at  the  same  time,  to  typify  the  kingdom 
of  Jesus  Christ,  David’s  more  exalted  Son.  With 
this  single  explanatory  remark,  I would  leave  the 
general  structure  of  the  Psalm,  and  the  exposition 
of  its  various  parts,  to  your  own  reflections.  The 
passage  to  which  I particularly  invite  your  atten- 
tion, asserts  the  extent  and  duration  of  the  reign 
of  Jesus  Christ  upon  the  earth ; and  presents  a 
glowing  picture  of  its  prosperity  and  happiness. 
In  relation  to  its  extent,  it  is  to  embrace  “ all 
nations,”  and  in  duration,  it  “ shall  be  continued 


4 


as  long  as  the  sun.”  In  other  words,  the  kingdom 
of  Jesus  Christ — the  gospel  kingdom — shall  em- 
brace all  the  nations  of  the  earth,  and  endure, 
with  undiminished  power  and  glory,  while  the 
world  itself  shall  stand.  It  is  clearly  asserted, 
too,  that  the  happiness  of  the  human  family  will 
be  greatly  increased  under  the  predicted  reign  of 
the  Son  of  God.  “ Men  shall  be  blessed  in  him  : 
all  nations  shall  call  him  blessed.” 

Nothing  can  be  more  obvious  than  that  this 
prediction  asserts,  that  the  religion  of  the  Gospel 
will  hereafter  become,  and  will  continue  to  be,  the 
prevailing  religion  of  our  world.  This  fact  is  fully 
settled  in  the  Bible.  It  was,  for  ages,  the  grand 
theme  of  the  Old  Testament  prophets;  and  the 
truths  which  they  committed,  in  strains  of  exalted 
poetry,  to  the  sacred  lyre,  have  been  taken  up  and 
expounded  with  such  clearness  by  their  New  Tes- 
tament successors — by  the  Son  of  God  and  his 
apostles — that  not  a shadow  of  a doubt  can  rest 
upon  their  import.  The  same  fact,  that  is,  that 
Christianity  will  become  the  religion  of  the  world, 
might  be  inferred,  with  equal  certainty,  from  the 
admission,  that  God  is  its  Author,  or  that  the 
Bible  contains  a revelation  from  heaven. 

But  waving  these  considerations,  there  is  anoth- 
er important  truth  intimately  associated  with  the 
universal  spread  of  the  Gospel,  to  which  I would 
invite  your  attention  on  the  present  occasion. 
The  truth  to  which  1 refer  is  this  : that  the  relig- 


5 


ion  of  the  Bible  is  adapted,  in  its  nature,  to  be- 
come the  exclusive  religion  of  our  world.  This 
sentiment,  it  is  apprehended,  is  more  than  inti- 
mated in  the  text.  Jesus  Christ,  the  appointed 
King  of  Zion,  shall  not  only  reign  as  long  as  the 
sun  shall  shine  upon  the  earth,  but  “ men  shall  be 
blessed  in  him  : all  nations  shall  call  him  blessed.” 
The  Gospel  is  adapted  to  man  as  such — to  all 
men.  It  contemplates,  not  a specific  class  or 
order  of  men,  but  man  in  the  large  and  generic 
sense.  The  Son  of  God  has  “received  gifts  for 
men.”  His  empire  embraces  and  secures  the  best 
interests  of  our  fallen  race.  “ Men  shall  be  blessed 
in  him.”  “ All  nations  shall  call  him  blessed.” 
The  Gospel  is  adapted,  not  to  the  Jew,  nor  to  the 
Gentile  alone ; not  to  the  civilized,  nor  to  the 
barbarous  exclusively — but  to  “all  nations.”  And 
one  nation  after  another,  under  the  agencies  which 
God  has  ordained,  shall  welcome  the  Gospel,  as 
adapted  to  their  common  circumstances  and  their 
common  wants,  till  an  entire  world  of  nations 
shall  mingle  their  voices  and  send  up  the  homage 
of  their  hearts  in  one  universal  song. 

The  single  sentiment  I shall  attempt  to  illus- 
trate is  this  : The  religion  of  the  Bible  is  adapted , 
in  its  nature , to  become  the  exclusive  religion  of 
our  ivorld. 

1.  It  is  accommodated  to  every  stage  of  human 
society. 


6 


I shall  not  here  enter  upon  any  nice  specula- 
tions respecting  the  natural  state  of  man,  consid- 
ered merely  as  an  intellectual  and  social  being ; 
nor  attempt  to  settle  the  question  whether  that 
state  is  savage  or  civilized.  The  apostasy  of  our 
race  occupies  so  early  a page  in  the  history  of  the 
world,  that  it  may  be  difficult  for  us  even  to  pic- 
ture to  ourselves,  with  any  degree  of  certainty, 
what  our  condition  would  have  been,  as  it  regards 
social  habits,  intellectual  progress,  or  the  arts  of 
cultivated  life,  had  sin  never  marred  this  once 
lovely  heritage  of  God.  What  is  now  called  the 
state  of  nature — the  wild  and  savage  state,  to 
which  we  may  easily  trace  back  the  most  refined 
and  polished  nations — would  probably  never  have 
existed ; and  the  more  elevated  conditions  of  so- 
ciety, which  are  now  altogether  adventitious,  and 
which  are  superinduced  by  much  care  and  culture, 
might  have  been  perfectly  natural  to  man.  But 
these  speculations  apart,  it  is  sufficient  for  my 
present  purpose  to  refer  you  to  the  social  condition 
of  nations  as  it  is,  and  remind  you  of  the  diversi- 
fied forms  of  human  society  which  the  world 
actually  presents.  These  are  not  less  marked  and 
various  than  the  geographical  surface  of  different 
countries,  or  than  personal  form,  the  color  of  the 
skin,  or  the  features  of  the  human  face. 

A single  glance  at  the  world  as  it  is,  and  this 
the  intelligent  eye  has  already  taken,  will  save  the 
speaker  the  necessity  of  entering  into  detail.  We 


7 


have  on  the  surface  of  this  globe  a population 
almost  infinitely  diversified : the  polished  Euro- 
pean, and  his  descendants  not  less  elevated,  in 
almost  every  land  ; the  wild  Arab,  the  wandering 
Tartar,  the  inert  southern  Asiatic,  the  bigoted 
Jew,  the  proud  and  self-confident  Turk,  the  fierce 
cannibal  of  Australia,  the  debased  Hottentot,  the 
ignorant  Greenlander,  and  the  rude  and  savage 
tenant  of  our  own  native  forests : — and  these  fur- 
nish but  a mere  specimen  of  the  human  race. 
Nations  differ  in  almost  every  thing — in  their 
modes  of  obtaining  a livelihood,  in  civilization  and 
intellectual  culture,  in  moral  habits  and  religious 
rites. 

But  the  Gospel  makes  an  appeal  which  men,  in 
all  these  diversified  national  circumstances,  are 
capable  of  feeling.  This  appeal  they  have  felt. 
In  the  days  of  the  apostles,  the  truth  of  God  over- 
leaped the  frame-work  of  national  caste,  and 
evinced,  in  every  land  where  its  truths  were 
announced,  its  power  to  save.  And  facts  of  the 
same  character  are  interwoven  with  the  whole 
history  of  modern  missions.  Such  have  been  the 
triumphs  of  the  Gospel  in  our  day,  that  the  fool- 
ishness of  infidelity,  which  has  loudly  asserted 
that  Christianity  cannot  be  propagated  among  the 
nations  who  differ  in  their  habits  and  religions  from 
those  who  have  long  been  under  the  influence  of 
this  system,  has  been  rebuked  and  put  to  silence. 
The  religion  of  the  Bible  is  just  such  a scheme  as 


8 


is  demanded,  in  order  to  accomplish  the  great 
objects  which  it  proposes.  As  it  is  designed  for  a 
world,  so  it  is  suited  to  the  exigencies  of  a world. 
It  has  a universality  of  purpose,  and  a universality 
of  character,  in  order  to  carry  out  and  perfect  that 
purpose.  It  takes  the  world  as  it  is,  and  goes 
about  the  work  of  making  it  better.  It  can  reach 
men  just  where  they  are,  notwithstanding  their 
national  peculiarities,  and  make  them  the  friends 
of  God  and  the  heirs  of  heaven.  It  needs  no 
pioneer.  It  asks  for  no  herald  to  invoke  other 
agencies  to  prepare  the  way  for  its  coming  and 
reception.  It  is  itself  the  pioneer  of  .Jehovah — 
the  herald  of  the  great  King. 

These  things  can  be  affirmed  only  of  the  Gos- 
pel. Were  we  to  examine  all  the  systems  of 
ancient  and  modern  philosophy  which  have  pro- 
posed to  make  men  wise  and  happy,  and  submit 
them  to  a critical  analysis,  we  should  perceive  that 
they  are  all  strongly  tinged  with  the  spirit  of  the 
age  and  nation  in  which  they  originated  ; and 
were,  at  the  same  time,  capable  only  of  a limited 
application.  Carry  these  systems  across  a few 
lines  of  latitude  or  longitude,  and  they  become 
exotics  in  an  ungenial  clime  and  perish  of  them- 
selves. Protract  their  existence  a single  century, 
upon  the  very  soil  which  gave  them  birth,  and 
among  the  very  people  who  originated  and  cher- 
ished their  dogmas,  and  they  become  superan- 
nuated and  die  of  old  age.  The  same  is  true  of 


9 


the  religions  of  the  world.  They  are  all  local  and 
temporary,  and  well  they  may  be,  for  they  are 
dependent  on  circumstances  for  their  very  exist- 
ence. It  would  be  a thing  next  to  impossible  to 
bring  the  Turks  and  the  Greenlanders  to  exchange 
religions;  and  yet  Turkey  and  Greenland  may  be 
made  to  feel  the  truth  of  God,  and  submit  to  its 
power.  No  system  of  false  philosophy  has  ever 
been  universal — no  single  form  of  paganism  has 
established  its  dominion  over  the  nations  of  the 
earth.  But  the  Gospel  is  indigenous  in  every  soil 
where  it  is  planted.  It  is  at  home  in  every  land. 
It  accomplishes  its  own  appropriate  work  wherever 
it  goes,  for  God  is  in  it. 

I would  not  intimate  in  these  remarks,  that  dif- 
ferent states  of  society  may  not  be  more  or  less 
favorable  to  the  propagation  of  the  Gospel ; nor 
deny  that  auxiliary  agencies  may  be  employed  to 
unfold,  diffuse,  and  enforce  the  truth  of  God  ; and 
least  of  all  would  I affirm  that  the  Gospel  will 
leave  a nation  as  it  finds  it.  Civilization  and  the 
useful  arts  of  life,  letters  and  refinement,  in  one 
word,  all  that  can  elevate  man  in  the  scale  of 
being,  promote  his  happiness,  or  adorn  and  beau- 
tify his  social  character,  have  never  failed,  other 
things  being  favorable,  to  follow  in  the  footsteps 
of  this  revelation  from  heaven. 

2.  The  Gospel  is  suited  to  the  common  wants 
of  man. 


2 


10 


This  system  was  not  contrived  to  relieve  us 
from  some  factitious  evils,  nor  to  minister  to  our 
artificial  wants;  but  it  contemplates  the  world  in 
its  true  light,  and  undertakes  at  once  to  mitigate, 
and  ultimately  to  root  out,  all  suffering  from  the 
kingdom  of  Christ. 

And  here  we  may  see  the  difference  between 
the  Gospel  and  every  antagonist  and  conflicting 
system.  It  is  the  difference  between  what  is 
particular  and  what  is  general — between  what  is 
limited  to  individuals,  and  what  is  common  to  all 
men — between  what  is  restricted  to  one  country 
or  one  age,  and  what  may  be  applied  with  equal 
propriety  and  practical  effect  to  every  country  of 
the  globe,  or  to  every  period  from  the  beginning 
to  the  end  of  time.  The  Gospel  overlooks,  as 
unworthy  of  its  high  and  heavenly  aims,  that 
which  is  circumstantial,  local,  and  temporary  ; and 
selects,  as  the  object  of  its  benevolence,  that  which 
is  essential,  unlimited,  and  enduring.  Among  the 
pagans,  many  a deity  has  derived  his  existence 
from  a mountain,  stream,  or  forest.  Altars  and 
forms  of  worship  have  been  called  into  being  to 
avert  some  impending  calamity,  to  stay  the  ravages 
of  famine,  to  mitigate  the  rage  of  pestilence,  or  to 
turn  aside  the  bloody  scourge  of  war.  The  form 
and  productions  of  a country,  the  customs  of  do- 
mestic and  social  life,  the  prevalence  of  certain 
types  of  disease,  the  peaceful  or  warlike  habits  of 
a people,  and  an  endless  catalogue  of  like  circum- 


11 


stances,  have  not  only  shaped  and  modified,  but 
have  actually  created  systems  of  religious  belief 
and  practice. 

But  the  Gospel  is  constructed  upon  another 
principle.  It  professes  to  supply  what  is  most 
needful  for  man,  upon  a nobler  and  more  magnifi- 
cent scale.  It  never  attempts,  as  most  false  relig- 
ions do,  to  remove  the  trivial  and  incidental  evils 
of  life  ; to  guard  men  against  the  disabilities  which 
belong  to  their  specific  circumstances  ; nor  to  ward 
off  disease  or  death  by  charms  or  talismanic  power  ; 
but  regarding  all  these  as  light  afflictions  which 
endure  but  for  a moment,  it  settles  down  at  once 
upon  tbe  common  wants  of  men,  as  pilgrims  on 
the  earth  and  the  heirs  of  eternity. 

A few  of  the  common  wants  of  our  dying  world, 
for  which  the  Gospel  effectually  provides,  may 
very  properly  be  enumerated  in  this  place. 

Man,  in  relation  to  all  kinds  of  knowledge,  is 
the  subject  of  instruction;  and  in  nothing  does  he 
more  imperatively  demand  it  than  in  religion. 
The  lights  of  this  world  have  become  so  dimmed, 
that  he  never  clearly  sees,  nor  fully  performs  his 
duties  to  God  or  his  fellows,  till  a purer  and 
brighter  orb  in  heaven  shines  upon  him.  Sin  has 
well  nigh  obliterated  the  perceptions  of  God  and 
duty  from  the  human  mind.  The  world  is  perish- 
ing for  the  want  of  spiritual  knowledge.  This  is 
seen  and  felt  every  where.  Not  a soul  on  earth 
can  find  the  way  to  heaven  without  the  special 


12 


interposition  of  God ; and  whether  he  communi- 
cates himself  silently  and  mysteriously,  in  here 
and  there  a solitary  case,  without  a written  reve- 
lation, we  are  not  informed,  and  it  is  a problem 
which  we  are  not  required  to  solve.  But  this  we 
do  know,  for  God  has  taught  it,  that  the  Bible  is 
the  grand  source  of  religious  instruction.  The 
nations  are  in  midnight  without  it.  It  is  a dark- 
ness without  the  prospect  of  a dawn.  It  is  deep, 
dense,  central,  visible ; and  not  a star  of  promise 
has  been  seen  in  the  heavens,  as  the  harbinger  of 
an  opening  day,  by  any  telescope  which  nature  or 
art  has  been  able  to  construct.  Without  the  Gos- 
pel, men  are  every  where  destitute  of  that  knowl- 
edge necessary  to  the  well-being  of  the  soul ; and 
with  it,  they  have  every  thing  which  God  himself 
deemed  essential  when  their  salvation  was  the 
grand  object  to  be  accomplished.  This  fallen 
world  needs  an  infallible  guide,  and  that  guide  is 
to  be  found  alone  in  a written  revelation.  No 
decrees  of  popes  or  councils  can  supply  its  place. 
No  tradition,  though  it  were  to  descend  from 
heaven,  and  emanate  from  the  throne  of  God,  can 
become  a substitute.  The  Jew',  the  Pagan,  the 
Mohammedan,  the  Catholic,  the  Protestant,  all 
need  this  volume.  It  is  adapted  to  the  common 
wants  of  a w'orld  ; and  the  nation,  w hether  refined 
or  barbarous,  that  is  destitute  of  it,  is  living  with- 
out the  sun. 


13 


But  man  needs  not  only  an  infallible  instructer, 
but  support  under  the  nameless  evils  which  sin  has 
inflicted  upon  him.  In  every  country  under  heaven, 
on  every  continent  and  every  island  of  the  sea,  he 
is  hardly  less  miserable  than  he  is  sinful.  And  yet 
the  religion  of  the  Savior  can  mingle  the  ingre- 
dients of  comfort  in  every  bitter  cup.  Passing 
over  a long  list  of  ills  which  flesh  is  heir  to,  I 
would  fix  your  attention  on  two,  to  which  all  men 
are  subject  in  whatever  state  of  society  or  condi- 
tion of  life,  and  for  which  the  Gospel  provides  a 
perfect  remedy.  I refer  to  remorse  of  conscience 
and  the  sting  of  death.  These  are  co-extensive 
with  the  fallen  race.  Sin  is  an  evil  of  so  malig- 
nant  a character,  that  it  reveals  itself  in  the  pre- 
sent life  : it  is  followed  by  a present  retribution. 
Verily,  there  “ is  a God  that  judgeth  in  the  earth.” 
The  poor  pagan  feels  this,  and  hence  his  sacrifices 
and  his  self-inflicted  tortures.  It  is  on  this  princi- 
ple that  penance  and  pilgrimages  belong  to  most 
systems  of  false  religion.  But  the  Gospel  alone 
can  calm  the  troubled  spirit,  pluck  away  the  deep- 
seated  anguish  of  the  heart,  and  inspire  that  hope 
which  prophesies  of  heaven.  And  not  only  are 
the  great  evils  of  life  provided  for  by  the  religion 
of  Christ,  but  death  itself — that  event  everywhere 
dreaded  in  our  world — that  event  which  may,  in 
itself,  be  considered  the  sum  and  concentration  of 
all  earthly  ills — the  primeval  curse  of  God  upon  a 
world  of  rebels,  may  be  divested  of  all  its  unlove- 


14 


liness,  and  disarmed  of  all  its  inflictions,  and  be 
converted  into  the  richest  blessing.  The  Christian 
victor’s  song  is,  “ O death,  where  is  thy  sting  ? 
O grave,  where  is  thy  victory  ? ” 

3.  The  Gospel  is  adapted  to  every  order  of 
mind . 

In  this  respect  it  differs  from  all  human  systems. 
Among  the  most  distinguished  ancient  nations  they 
had  one  religion  for  the  learned,  and  another  for 
the  illiterate.  This  was  true  in  Greece,  and  pro- 
bably, to  some  extent,  in  Rome.  Their  great 
men,  and  especially  their  sages  and  philosophers, 
gave  little  or  no  credit  to  the  doctrines  of  poly- 
theism admitted  by  the  vulgar ; but  on  the  other 
hand  approximated  to  something  like  a pure  theism 
in  their  religious  belief.  I would  not  affirm  that 
this  was  universal,  possibly  it  was  not  even  gen- 
eral ; but,  in  many  cases,  it  is  an  unquestioned 
fact.  As  to  their  systems  of  philosophy,  they 
were  too  refined  and  subtle  to  be  received  by 
common  minds.  I do  not  sav  understood , for  it 
may  be  fairly  doubted  whether  they  were  under- 
stood by  any.  They  were  marked  by  intellectual 
caste ; and  this  stamp  had  been  put  upon  them 
intentionally,  in  order  to  protect  the  prerogatives 
of  great  minds,  and  to  show  the  common  mass  of 
men  that  they  had  no  right  to  think.  Neither  the 
system  of  the  Stoics  nor  of  the  Epicureans  could 
have  become  universal.  They  were  limited  by 
their  very  nature  ; the  former  to  a certain  order  of 


mind,  and  the  latter  to  a certain  moral  or  physical 
temperament;  and  both  of  them  entirely  inappli- 
cable, in  all  their  parts  and  ramifications,  to  the 
society  or  population  of  any  country.  Were  we 
to  examine  the  speculations  of  any  or  every  ancient 
philosopher,  trace  out  the  various  systems,  examine 
their  origin,  scrutinize  their  purposes  or  intentions, 
and  follow  their  progress  to  their  final  results,  we 
should  arrive  at  this  conclusion,  that  they  were 
never  designed  for  the  world  at  large,  and  being 
adapted  to  a particular  order  of  intellect,  their 
influence,  whether  good  or  bad,  would  be  restrict- 
ed to  a small  number  of  individuals  wherever  their 
doctrines  might  be  embraced. 

By  the  side  of  these  intellectual  and  moral 
schemes,  contemplate  the  character  of  the  Gospel 
in  relation  to  the  single  feature  of  its  adaptedness 
to  every  order  of  mind.  W hile  some  religions  are 
suited  to  the  unlettered,  and  some  to  the  cultivat- 
ed, and  while  the  same  may  be  affirmed  of  certain 
systems  of  philosophy  and  morals,  the  Bible 
scheme  is  adapted  to  the  intellect  of  every  man. 
No  elevation  of  mind  can  rise  above  the  sublimity 
of  its  truths,  no  stretch  of  thought  can  go  beyond 
the  vast  reach  of  its  purpose,  no  analytic  powers 
can  detect  a discordant  element  in  its  grand  and 
complicated  system.  It  teaches  the  great  man, 
and  makes  him  wiser  and  better.  Time  would 
fail  me,  were  I to  attempt  to  enumerate  the  men 
of  mighty  minds,  the  giants  of  the  earth,  who  have 


16 


towered  above  their  fellows,  as  the  oak  above  the 
saplings  of  the  forest,  who,  at  the  same  time,  have 
acknowledged  themselves  indebted  for  their  best 
lessons  of  instruction,  to  the  Bible.  Boyle,  of 
whom  it  has  been  said,  “To  him  we  owe  the 
secrets  of  fire,  air,  water,  animals,  vegetables,  fos- 
sils, so  that  from  his  works  may  be  deduced  the 
whole  system  of  natural  knowledge,”  was  in  the 
habit  of  reading  this  letter  from  heaven  upon  his 
knees ; and  Newton,  that  child-like  sage,  investi- 
gated the  wonders  of  revelation  with  an  intensity 
not  less  excited  and  profound,  than  that  with  which 
he  scanned  the  starry  heavens,  or  passed  his 
measuring-line  around  the  earth,  or  unbraided  the 
complicated  tissue  of  light. 

Nor  was  this  communication  from  God  made 
for  the  instruction  or  entertainment  of  great  minds 
alone,  but  is  equally  adapted  to  the  humble  and 
the  unlettered.  It  is  in  ^revelation  as  in  nature  : 
sublimity  and  simplicity  are  always  united.  The 
same  volume  which  furnishes  the  richest  instruc- 
tions to  the  sage,  can  be  understood  and  enjoyed 
witli  as  fine  a relish  by  the  husbandman  who  fol- 
lows the  plough,  by  the  mechanic  in  his  work- 
shop, or  by  the  child  in  the  Sabbath-school.  What 
a vast  variety,  with  respect  to  mental  power  and 
acquirement,  may  be  found  in  the  ranks  of  believ- 
ers ; and  yet,  gathered  as  they  are  from  the  four 
winds  of  heaven,  they  all  entertain  essentially  the 
same  views  of  the  way  of  salvation,  and  have 


17 


manifestly  imbibed  the  same  spirit.  Indeed  I may 
add,  what  no  one  who  has  studied  this  subject  can 
have  overlooked,  that  the  Gospel,  being  designed 
for  a world  as  it  is — a world  in  which  the  great 
majority  of  its  inhabitants  are  ignorant  and  unin- 
structed, has  been  formed  for  the  very  purpose  of 
meeting  this  case.  It  is  a revelation  to  the  be- 
nighted  and  the  lowly.  It  teaches  the  sublimest 
truths  in  such  a manner  that  babes  may  under- 
stand them,  and  inculcates  the  simplest  with  such 
a heavenly  elevation  and  pathos,  that  minds  of  the 
largest  compass  and  the  profoundest  thought  are 
instructed  and  delighted. 

4.  The  Gospel  counteracts  sin  in  every  possi- 
ble condition. 

Sin  is  the  source  of  all  the  other  evils  which 
prevail  under  the  government  of  God  ; and  the 
object  of  the  coming  of  Christ,  and  the  introduc- 
tion and  propagation  of  the  Gospel,  is  the  exter- 
mination of  this  great  evil  from  our  world.  The 
Bible  describes  its  nature,  and  tells  us  of  its  pre- 
sent and  future  consequences.  It  holds  up,  in  the 
sun-light  of  eternal  truth,  its  malignant  features, 
and,  for  an  illustration  of  its  fruits,  points  us  to  a 
bleeding  earth  and  a burning  hell.  The  introduc- 
tion of  this  evil  into  our  world  was  the  work  of 
Satan  ; and  “for  this  purpose  the  Son  of  God  was 
manifested  that  he  might  destroy  the  works  of  the 
devil.”  No  other  system  of  morals  or  religion 
3 


13 


has  made  an  attack  upon  sin  as  such.  Some  par- 
ticular sins  have  been  denounced,  and  to  a certain 
extent,  no  doubt,  counteracted  by  their  practical 
influence ; but  it  was  reserved  for  the  Gospel 
alone  to  proclaim  war  against  every  sin,  great  and 
small.  It  spares  no  man;  it  has  no  protecting 
shield  for  the  transgressor.  It  has  no  mantle  of 
charity  to  inwrap  the  sinner,  and  thus  cover  up 
his  true  character  as  the  enemy  of  God.  It  lays 
the  axe  “at  the  root  of  the  trees,”  and  hews  down 
the  tall  cedar  as  well  as  the  withered  bramble. 
It  condemns  the  sinning  monarch  in  terms  as  un- 
sparing and  uncompromising  as  it  does  the  sinning 
beggar.  For  the  city  and  the  country,  for  the 
refined  and  the  ignoble,  for  Christian  and  for  pagan 
lands,  there  is  but  one  lawr — “Without  holiness  no 
man  shall  see  the  Lord.”  It  has  no  respect  to 
age,  station,  learning,  country,  kindred,  sex,  fam- 
ily, or  profession  in  life,  but  bears  testimony 
against  all  who  love  and  practise  sin. 

But  the  Gospel  does  something  more  than  de- 
scribe the  nature  of  sin,  and  point  out  the  present 
and  future  woes  which  hang  around  a wicked 
heart  and  life.  It  proposes  a remedy.  It  would 
relieve  our  sinful  and  suffering  world  from  its  ac- 
cumulated evils  by  striking  a death-blow  at  the 
very  root  of  all  mischief.  The  Gospel  is  a scheme 
contrived  of  God  and  revealed  from  heaven  for  the 
removal  of  sin.  It  undertakes  to  make  men  happy 
only  by  this  process.  It  provides  for  the  pardon 


19 


of  sin  through  the  blood  of  the  atonement ; and  by 
the  instrumentality  of  truth,  and  the  agency  of  the 
Spirit,  carries  on,  in  the  heart  of  the  penitent  and 
believing  sinner,  a work  of  progressive  sanctifica- 
tion, which  will  be  rendered  perfect  and  triumphant 
in  heaven.  And  unless  this  effect  can  be  produced, 
of  what  use  is  any  scheme  of  religion  for  such  a 
world  as  this  ? A man  may  pass  through  a thou- 
sand changes,  and  till  he  pass  from  death  to  life, 
from  sin  to  holiness,  he  wears  his  chains,  and  is  on 
the  way  to  execution.  The  great  curse  is  still  on 
him,  and  he  must  be  miserable.  Sin  is  uncancelled, 
and  he  cannot  be  happy.  Of  what  avail  are  the 
stripes  and  lacerations  which  are  self-inflicted  by 
the  poor  pagan ; or  the  austerities  and  penance  of 
the  Romanist;  or  the  fine  speculations  of  the  Uni- 
tarian or  the  deist  on  the  beauty  of  virtue  and  the 
benevolence  of  God,  while  no  radical  change  is 
effected  in  the  character  ? Man  is  every  where  a 
sinner ; and  in  all  these  human  schemes  and  de- 
vices there  is  no  provision  for  the  removal  of  this 
fundamental  evil.  No  system  of  religion,  whatever 
name  it  may  wear,  whether  Christian  or  pagan, 
can  supply  the  moral  demands  of  such  a world  as 
ours,  unless  it  commence  with  sin.  Spare  this 
and  you  ruin  the  world.  Leave  this  unprovided 
for,  and  you  shut  forever  the  gate  of  heaven. 
Omit  this  single  item,  and  you  open  wide  the  door 
of  perdition.  Strike  out  from  your  scheme  the 
provision  for  pardon  and  the  power  of  sanctifica- 


20 


tion,  and  you  have  a religion  which  can  never  be- 
come universal,  and  would  be  of  no  use  were  it  to 
become  universal,  for  it  would  bring  no  relief  to  a 
sinful  world.  But  such  is  not  the  Gospel  of  the 
Son  of  God. 

5.  The  Gospel  is  not  dependent  on  any  system 
of  human  philosophy. 

The  Bible  teaches  “as  one  having  authority, 
and  not  as  the  scribes.”  In  narrating  facts,  it 
records  them  as  they  are,  and  in  their  proper  rela- 
tions ; in  the  revelation  of  doctrines,  it  presents 
them  as  fundamental  truths  which  are  to  he  ac- 
credited, and  makes  no  explanations  of  the  former, 
and  enters  into  no  reasonings  respecting  the  latter. 
It  discloses  facts  and  principles  of  which  all  men, 
or  the  generality  of  men  were  before  ignorant,  or 
in  which,  at  least,  they  were  but  imperfectly  in- 
structed ; and  there  it  leaves  them.  And  there 
these  truths  stand  stereotyped  forever,  without 
change  of  form  or  feature.  The  Gospel  borrows 
nothing  from  the  reigning  philosophy,  for  it  has 
nothing  to  decorate  that  it  may  attract  the  eyes  of 
men ; nothing  to  render  palatable  by  courting  the 
popular  taste ; nothing  to  explain,  nothing  to  re- 
concile. From  the  commencement  to  the  close  of 
its  communications  to  our  world,  though  these 
extend  through  more  than  fifteen  centuries,  and 
were  furnished  by  a large  number  of  sacred  pen- 
men, it  never  loses  sight  of  one  fixed  purpose,  and 
that  is  to  tell  men  what  truth  is.  And  when  this 


is  done,  its  work  is  finished.  Ft  never  comments 
or  philosophises  upon  its  own  production.  Hence 
the  Bible,  like  its  Author,  has  a kind  of  ubiquity, 
and  can  live  every  where ; and,  like  him,  it  has  a 
perpetuity  of  existence,  and  is  the  same  in  every 
age.  Systems  of  human  philosopliy  may  rise  and 
fall,  and  yet  Bible  truth  flows  on  in  a steady  and 
majestic  stream,  and  not  its  surface  is  rippled  by 
the  change. 

In  the  interpretation  of  revealed  truth,  and  in 
the  construction  of  human  creeds  and  symbols,  as 
well  as  in  all  the  systems  of  false  religion,  the 
philosophy  of  the  age,  both  intellectual  and  moral, 
and  perhaps  I might  add  in  some  cases,  natural 
philosophy  too,  has  exerted  a very  perceptible  in- 
fluence. This  is  what  we  might  expect.  If  men 
construct  a religion,  it  must  be  of  course  a human 
religion,  and  it  will  partake  of  human  thoughts 
and  qualities.  Men  cannot  beget  angels.  We 
can  hardly  look  upon  one  of  these  earthly  produc- 
tions without  being  able  to  detect  its  parentage  ; 
and  to  tell  the  age  and  country  of  its  birth.  The 
same  is  the  case,  to  some  extent,  of  all  human 
symbols  of  the  true  religion.  The  creeds  and 
commentaries  of  each  particular  age  and  nation 
embody  much  which  belongs  to  that  age  and  na- 
tion. Indeed,  we  cannot  expect  it  should  be 
otherwise ; for  they  are  the  productions  of  men, 
and  fathers  generally  live  a second  life  in  their 
children.  But  the  Bible  occupies  an  independent 


22 


position.  It  is  the  production  of  God.  It  depends 
on  no  other  system.  It  borrows  nothing  from  any 
other.  Other  systems  live,  flourish,  wane,  and 
die;  but  this  remains  the  same.  It  has  already 
survived,  amidst  the  changing  theories  and  specu- 
lations of  the  world,  almost  six  thousand  years  ; 
and  it  is  yet  clad  in  all  the  freshness  of  its  glory, 
as  it  was  in  the  day  when  it  was  born  in  heaven, 
and  sent  down  to  the  earth  for  our  instruction. 
Time  has  not  whitened  its  locks,  or  palsied  its 
hand,  or  chilled  its  heart.  Systems  of  philosophy 
and  modes  of  interpretation,  one  after  another, 
have  gone  down  to  the  sepulchre,  and  are  known 
only  in  their  epitaph ; but  the  Gospel  lives,  and  is 
powerful  to  save.  Other  systems  which  are 
founded  in  error  will  in  like  manner  pass  away  ; 
but  the  religion  of  the  Bible  will  never  cease  to 
exist  and  act  upon  the  world  till  all  that  God  has 
greatly  purposed  and  kindly  promised  shall  be  fully 
accomplished.  Its  truths  may  be  tinged  or  obscur- 
ed by  a false  philosophy,  or  by  human  specula- 
tions, but  this  effect  is  local  and  temporary. 
These  things  are  no  part  of  the  system.  The 
Bible  remains  the  same  ; and,  at  another  day,  or 
in  another  country,  all  is  restored.  Clouds  and 
mists  may,  in  one  hemisphere,  or  for  a few  days, 
cover  the  face  of  the  sun  and  shut  out  the  light, 
but  the  sun  is  not  extinguished.  He  is  always 
shining  somewhere ; and  the  clouds  and  mists  of 
all  human  theories  will  by  and  by  be  dissipated, 


23 


and  he  will  break  forth,  and  in  full-orbed  radiance 
shine  every  where. 

6.  The  Gospel  has  no  necessary  connection 
with  any  form  of  human  government. 

The  Bible  acknowledges  the  right  and  sanctions 
the  powers  and  prerogatives  of  civil  government ; 
but  it  does  not  prescribe  any  particular  form.  The 
most  that  is  said  on  this  subject  in  the  New  Tes- 
tament, is  rather  incidental  than  direct;  and  is 
addressed  principally  to  Christians,  enjoining  it 
upon  them  to  be  peaceful  subjects  of  whatever 
government  may  happen  to  exist.  The  following 
are  specimens  : “ Let  every  soul  be  subject  unto 
the  higher  powers.  For  there  is  no  power  but  of 
God : the  powers  that  be,  are  ordained  of  God. 
Whosoever  therefore  resisteth  the  power,  resisteth 
the  ordinance  of  God ; and  they  that  resist,  shall 
receive  to  themselves  damnation.”  And  again  : 
“ Render  therefore  to  all  their  dues  : tribute  to 
whom  tribute  is  due  ; custom  to  whom  custom ; 
fear  to  whom  fear  ; honor  to  whom  honor.”  It  is 
also  said,  “ Submit  yourselves  to  every  ordinance 
of  man  for  the  Lord’s  sake  : whether  it  be  to  the 
king,  as  supreme  ; or  unto  governors,  as  unto  them 
that  are  sent  by  him  for  the  punishment  of  evil- 
doers, and  for  the  praise  of  them  that  do  well.” 

This  language  is  accommodated  to  the  existing 
governments  of  the  apostolic  age  ; but  the  spirit 
of  these  precepts  may  be  applied  with  equal  pro- 
priety to  any  and  every  form  of  civil  and  political 


24 


institutions.  Had  the  Gospel  assumed  any  other 
ground  than  this,  it  would  have  been  fatal  to  its 
prospects  as  designed  for  a universal  religion.  If 
any  one  form  had  been  selected  and  approved,  and 
others  condemned,  it  would  have  converted  the 
message  of  heaven  into  a political  proclamation, 
and  all  nations,  except  those  whose  institutions 
might  have  received  its  approval,  would  have  armed 
themselves  against  its  approach.  It  would  have 
been  met  and  repelled  with  the  same  spirit  with 
which  men  are  accustomed  to  meet  and  repel  in- 
vading fleets  and  armies. 

That  the  Gospel  is  friendly  to  the  rights  of  man 
and  the  liberties  of  the  world,  is  a proposition  too 
obvious  to  need  proof.  The  influence  of  this  sys- 
tem, wherever  it  is  cordially  received,  is  felt  upon 
every  great  interest  of  society — upon  the  people 
and  upon  the  government.  It  will  show  itself 
upon  the  legislation  of  a country — upon  the  char- 
acter and  the  execution  of  its  laws — and  in  various 
ways,  and  by  pervading  and  controlling  influences 
peculiar  to  itself,  destroy  oppression,  and  diffuse 
and  protect  equal  rights  among  men.  It  makes 
good  citizens  and  good  rulers,  without  interfering 
directly  either  with  the  form  or  administration  of 
government. 

It  was  owing  to  this  characteristic  of  the  Gospel 
that  the  first  heralds  of  the  cross  gained  access 
with  their  message  to  every  country,  notwithstand- 
ing the  peculiar  jealousies  of  the  age  respecting 


25 


international  communication;  and  though  often 
accused  of  treason,  they  were  never  convicted  of 
the  charge.  And  it  was  on  this  principle  that, 
without  an  attack  upon  any  political  institution, 
they  introduced  a train  of  moral  causes  which  have 
greatly  modified  and  well  nigh  revolutionized  the 
governments  of  the  civilized  world.  And  it  is  on 
the  same  principle  that  modern  missionaries  might 
be  permitted  to  go  every  where,  and  freely  and 
fully  proclaim  their  message,  without  any  alarm 
on  the  part  of  existing  governments.  Indeed, 
this  is  the  prevailing  temper  of  the  reigning  powers 
of  the  earth  at  this  moment.  And  in  those  cases 
where  Christian  missions  are  excluded  by  the  laws 
of  the  land,  their  enactments  are  either  founded 
on  ignorance  of  the  real  objects  of  the  enterprise, 
or,  as  is  more  generally  the  fact,  are  designed  to 
protect  some  false  system  of  religion,  which  has 
become  publicly  wedded  to  the  state,  and  which, 
every  one  must  know,  would  inevitably  fall  before 
the  powers  of  the  Gospel. 

REMARKS. 

1.  The  religion  of  the  Bible  must  be  true. 

It  cannot  be  the  product  of  the  human  mind. 
Its  adaptation  to  the  complicated  circumstances — 
to  the  wants,  the  sins,  and  the  miseries  of  the 
whole  world,  and  that,  too,  through  every  period 
4 


26 


of  its  existence,  is  peculiar  to  itself,  and  has  a 
parallel  in  no  other  system.  This  one  property  of 
the  Gospel  would  require  a greater  compass  of 
thought  and  stretch  of  ingenuity,  a more  intimate 
knowledge  of  facts,  a clearer  perception  of  causes 
and  effects,  and  final  results — of  existing  evils  and 
their  infallible  remedies,  than  belong  to  the  finite 
mind.  You  have  only  to  compare  the  religion  of 
the  Bible  with  other  systems,  and  you  discern  the 
difference  between  God’s  work  and  man’s.  The 
one  undertakes  only  to  provide  for  what  is  limited 
to  time  and  place  ; the  other,  dispensing  with  ages 
and  localities,  takes  a broad  sweep,  like  the  mind 
of  its  Author,  and  actually  provides  for  what  al- 
ways exists,  and  is  every  where  to  be  found. 

There  is  not  an  individual  religion  of  paganism 
among  the  nameless  varieties  that  fill  the  world  ; 
not  a speculation  of  ancient  or  modern  philosophy  ; 
not  a thought  in  the  vedas  or  shasters  of  the  Hin- 
doos ; not  a disclosure  in  the  koran,  the  pretended 
revelation  of  Mohammed ; not  a system  of  error, 
or  any  part  of  a system,  in  any  age  or  country, 
but  might  be  the  production  of  the  human  intel- 
lect and  heart,  and  would  ever  be  likely  to  be,  in 
the  same  existing  circumstances.  But  I ask,  who 
but  God  could  make  the  Bible  ? I speak  now 
only  of  its  adaptedness  to  the  purpose  for  which  it 
was  intended.  What  eye  but  that  which  surveys 
the  world  at  a glance,  and  beholds  all  nations, 
with  their  multifarious  ills  and  complicated  wants, 


27 


as  they  are,  and  reads  with  intuitive  certainty  the 
moral  pulsation  of  every  heart,  could  see  far 
enough,  and  wide  enough,  and  deep  enough,  for 
such  a work?  What  but  the  all-comprehensive 
mind  could  devise  a religious  system,  humble  in 
its  grandeur  and  majestic  in  its  simplicity,  which 
should  be  equally  applicable  to  men  in  every  na- 
tion and  every  age : which  has  power  to  reclaim 
the  heart  and  control  the  life ; to  disarm  the 
world  of  its  enmity  against  God  ; to  restore  the 
wanderer ; raise  the  disconsolate ; and  light  up  a 
smile  on  the  pale  cheek  of  death  ? Surely  this  is 
no  common  undertaking?  There  is  but  one  Being 
who  ever  thought  of  doing  it ; and  the  volume 
that  reveals  this  purpose  has,  written  deeply  and 
indelibly  upon  its  sacred  page,  the  signature  of 
God. 

2.  The  Gospel  will  finally  prevail. 

This  might  be  inferred  with  great  certainty 
from  the  fact,  or  the  admission,  that  God  is  its 
author.  If  he  constructed  the  scheme,  it  was  with 
some  object  in  view ; for  some  great  and  worthy 
purpose.  The  sins,  and  tears,  and  death-groans 
of  our  world  had  gone  up  to  heaven,  and  God  had 
fixed  his  heart  on  man’s  redemption.  For  this  he 
formed  the  plan,  sent  his  Son,  accepted  the  sacri- 
fice of  his  blood,  and  made,  in  his  name,  proclama- 
tion of  pardon  and  peace  to  this  great  family  of 
rebels.  And  shall  not  this  plan  go  into  full  effect? 
Will  the  great  Architect  leave  his  noble  edifice 


28 


half  finished  ? “ God  is  not  man,  that  he  should 

lie  ; neither  the  son  of  man,  that  he  should  repent. 
Hath  he  said  it,  and  shall  he  not  do  it?  Or  hath 
he  spoken,  and  shall  he  not  make  it  good  ?”  Hear 
his  own  declaration  ; “ The  Lord  hath  made  bare 
his  holy  arm  in  the  eyes  of  all  nations : and  all  the 
ends  of  the  earth  shall  see  the  salvation  of  our 
God.”  His  purpose  is  clearly  expressed,  and 
every  jot  and  tittle  shall  be  accomplished. 

For  the  renovation  of  this  world,  we  are  not  to 
forget  that  God  has  adopted  a system  of  agencies 
suited  to  the  object  to  be  accomplished.  The 
Gospel  is  not  a dead  letter,  but  “ the  power  of 
God,  and  the  wisdom  of  God.”  It  embodies  in 
itself  the  most  effective  moral  influences  which 
operate  any  where  in  the  vast  empire  of  God.  It 
was  contrived  for  a world  in  the  ruins  of  sin,  and 
it  is  the  master-piece  of  Jehovah — the  concentra- 
tion of  all  that  is  wise  and.  magnificent  in  heaven. 
It  is  just  what  the  dying  millions  of  our  world 
need.  It  can  reach  and  save  them.  Its  appeals 
are  such  as  human  minds  and  hearts  can  compre- 
hend and  feel.  It  comes  home  to  “the  business 
and  bosoms”  of  men  with  a conviction  and  pathos 
with  which  no  other  system  is  armed.  Every 
blow  it  strikes  in  our  world,  is  felt  upon  some 
interest,  and  tells  upon  its  final  destiny.  And 
securing,  as  it  does,  in  the  hands  of  a faithful 
ministry  and  a praying  church,  the  presence  and 
power  of  the  Spirit  of  God,  it  will  go  forth  in  its 


29 


strength  to  the  conquest  of  the  world.  And  what 
shall  stay  the  progress  of  that  scheme  of  grace  and 
restoration  which  God  has  constructed — which  is 
adapted  to  man  any  where  and  every  where — 
which  has  already  gathered  the  first-fruits  of  the 
coming  harvest — which  has  saved  its  millions  in 
ages  past — which  is  saving  its  tens  of  millions  in 
the  present  age,  and  in  reference  to  the  faithful 
administration  of  which  by  his  devoted  servants, 
Christ  himself  has  said,  “Lo,  I am  with  you 
alway,  even  unto  the  end  of  the  world  ?” 

3.  They  who  possess  the  Gospel  should  do  all 
they  can  to  communicate  it  to  others. 

This  subject  makes  an  appeal  to  Christians 
which  they  must  not,  cannot  resist.  The  Gospel, 
my  brethren,  has  been  committed  to  us,  and  there 
is  no  aspect  in  which  this  matter  can  be  viewed 
which  does  not  urge,  in  the  tenderest  and  most 
powerful  manner,  our  duty  and  our  responsibility 
upon  us.  We  have  the  very  scheme  of  mercy 
which  the  world  needs,  and  without  which  the 
w orld  must  perish.  And  this  dearest  gift  of  heaven 
was  put  into  our  hands,  not  that  we  should  im- 
prison or  chain  it,  but  that  we  should,  to  the  very 
last  stretch  of  our  power,  give  to  it  “the  wings  of 
the  morning,”  and  bid  it  fly  to  the  uttermost  parts 
of  the  earth.  The  wants  of  our  dying  world,  the 
nature  of  the  Gospel,  the  command  of  heaven,  the 
principle  of  benevolence,  the  pledge  of  success, 
the  seal  of  God  upon  all  past  efforts,  and  the 


30 


cheering  aspect  of  this  heaven-born  enterprise  of 
missions,  all — all  urge  us  to  stand  up  like  men 
upon  whom  the  vows  of  God  rest,  to  whom  the 
eyes  of  perishing  millions  are  directed,  and  whose 
hearts  have  taken  hold  on  the  interests  of  eternity, 
and  then  do  as  Christ  and  conscience  would  have 
us.  God  has  opened  wide  the  door  of  the  world 
before  us.  The  unevangelized  millions  of  the 
earth  feel,  at  this  moment,  more  deeply  than  they 
ever  felt,  their  need  of  the  Gospel  and  its  attend- 
ing institutions,  and  its  consequent  moral,  literary, 
social,  and  political  blessings.  And  can  we  go 
back,  or  even  stand  still,  when  we  contemplate 
what  God  has  already  permitted  us  to  do,  or  has 
kindly  done  by  us,  in  the  work  of  making  the 
world  what  he  would  have  it  ? Let  the  American 
Board  and  American  Christians  look  at  things  as 
they  are — at  their  eighty  missionary  stations, 
which  appear  as  so  many  "cultivated  spots  scatter- 
ed here  and  there  through  the  deep  and  dense 
wilderness  of  paganism — at  their  478  foreign  and 
native  laborers,  whose  toils  have  already  beautified 
these  gardens  of  God — at  their  10,810  reclaimed 
wanderers  who  have  taken  shelter  in  the  bosom 
of  the  church  the  last  year — at  their  twenty-four 
boarding-schools,  with  their  807  pupils — at  their 
415  free  schools,  with  their  21,606  little  inmates 
praying  for  instruction, — and  then  ask,  shall  this 
work  cease  ? Shall  another  midnight  succeed  this 
dawning  day  ? This  is  the  time  and  this  the  place 


31 


to  settle  this  question.  Oh,  let  us  lift  our  stream- 
ing eyes  and  bleeding  hearts  to  heaven,  and,  with 
a simple  reliance  on  God,  say  this  work  must  not 
cease. 

We,  my  Christian  friends,  are  engaged  in  an 
enterprise  that  honors  God  and  blesses  men  ; an 
enterprise  in  which  the  angels  might  wish  to  bear 
even  an  humble  part — the  progress  of  which  is 
intensely  gazed  upon  by  all  the  good  on  earth  and 
all  the  perfected  in  glory,  and  the  completion  of 
which  will  fill  the  world  with  songs  of  blessedness, 
and  heaven  with  shouts  of  endless  triumph. 

May  God  inspire  us  for  this  work,  and  take  the 
glory  to  himself ; Amen  and  Amen. 


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